Heartfelt appreciation to those who stopped for funeral procession

Thursday, March 16, 2023, was one of the most difficult days of my life. My wife and I were burying our unborn daughter. It’s something no parent should ever have to go through, but, unfortunately, it happens all too often.

As the hearse rounded the corner with that tiny little box on the way from the church to the cemetery, I was moved to tears by how many drivers stopped as the procession passed by. I, too, was taught that the polite thing to do when encountering a funeral procession was to pull over until the procession passed, but I honestly never fully understood why it really mattered until that very moment.

You see, the slight inconvenience of stopping while a funeral procession goes by pales in comparison to the pain felt by those in the procession itself. This small act of respect is an acknowledgment of the dignity of a human life and the grief felt by those who loved that person. And it matters.

So, to those who stopped for my daughter Emma’s funeral procession, thank you. You may never know how much that meant to me and my family. Know that if I ever come across the procession of one of your loved ones, I will return the gesture, whispering a silent prayer for you and your family.

Andy Whiting

Hiawatha